


Efforts

by SnowedIn14



Series: Gaining [1]
Category: Natsume Yuujinchou | Natsume's Book of Friends
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-19
Updated: 2016-03-19
Packaged: 2018-05-27 15:27:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6289909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SnowedIn14/pseuds/SnowedIn14
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One sentence stories by the four people who live in the Fujiwara house. Attempts to keep with canon.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Efforts

Anger:

Shigeru is not easily given to anger anymore, but in the face of these...actual pieces of excrement detailing how terrible of a child Takashi was, he finds himself fighting to keep his hand from curling into a fist.

It took a while, but word finally got around Yatsuhara forest: Natsume Takashi was an incredibly kind person up until you threatened the Fujiwaras, then you met his desperate rage.

Madara found himself gravely disconcerted that such a slim bean sprout could induce protective feelings on his behalf; but standing over Natsume's wounded form, he felt it churning through his gut.

Anger was not something Touko had been well acquainted with until her Takashi-Kun came to live with them, at which point she became an expert at hiding the flashes that came up whenever her boy acted surprised that she was kind.

~*~*~  
Happiness:

He had never expected it, but there was a strange gladness at the moment he saw one of his old sweaters half-drowning Takashi-kun. 

It annoyed poor Nyanko-sensei, but Takashi felt almost giddy at the prospect of finishing a school year with the same class he started with.

He knew it was fleeting, but sitting on a warm lap on a cool night, ears being scratched in just the right spot- well.

"Oh!" Shigeru looked up at Touko's exclamation to see her smiling face, "Takashi-kun forgot to thank me for making lunch!"

 

~*~*~  
Sorrow:

Shigeru had few regrets in his life, primarily his wife's face when she saw families with children.

Natsume knew he couldn't help everyone, or solve everything, but that didn't keep him from trying- or hurting when he failed.

It ran across the floor, and Madara let out a despairing yowl while Natsume scrambled to sop up the spilled sake.

For some it may have been a small incident, but when the small ceramic trinket (from her mother) broke, Touko's tears managed to terrify Takashi-kun into awkwardly patting her shoulder, finally breaking a long-standing barrier.

~*~*~  
Illness:

Shigeru counted himself fortunate that illness struck rarely, but doing so sent his love into a tizzy of mother-henning- at least this time he had Takashi-kun as fellow prisoner.

In his experience, being sick was something to endure in solitude, so sharing his convalescence with Shigeru-san was a learning experience as Touko-san's fussing managed to multiply itself exponentially. 

He slept through most of it, but Madara knew well enough that the brief instances of gentle care he did recall were outpourings of Natsume's guilt and worry, the idiot bean sprout.

It wasn't that Touko was ever glad that Takashi-kun managed to fall ill regularly, it was just that when he did, she was able to show him ever so slightly more affection while his barriers were lowered.

~*~*~  
Greed:

Perhaps it was petty, and it was certainly selfish, but Shigeru was relieved when Takashi (finally) plainly showed a preference for peaches, leaving most of the plums for himself.

It took a long time, but Takashi eventually managed to figure out that Shigure-San liked plums, which meant Takashi could eat his peaches without guilt.

Madara spent the better part of a year rolling his eyes as the two males danced around about fruit- but at least he didn't have to share any of his sake.

Keeping her boys in peaches and plums was definitely self-serving as she gathered and counted smiles of gratitude from both. 

 

~*~*~  
Tranquility:

Despite the uproar that Reiko had caused, Shigeru realized that the tension building up in the house had gone along with her.

Before, the only peace Takashi managed was in solitude so it amazed him to look around, see his friends and family, and still be at peace.

Sometimes Madara liked to walk around the house on the nights Takashi was without nightmares and soak up the atmosphere.

Even an unassuming boy like Takashi-kun made noise, but it was no surprise to Touko to notice that even so, the house felt more at peace with itself.

 

~*~*~  
Pride:

Compared to when he first came to live with them, watching Takashi-kun successfully and willingly interact with people now sent a burst of paternal pride spiraling through his chest.

It was a small thing, but seeing Touko-San exult over his latest test results was amazing.

The brat was far from grown, but sometimes Madara admitted to himself that Natsume would greatly outpace Reiko- with his help, obviously.

It had taken a lot of work, but eavesdropping on her boys, she was glad to find that they had managed to connect enough to hold a conversation without her presence.

 

~*~*~  
Care:

It was difficult with someone as distrusting as Takashi-kun, but Shigeru kept the image of a frightened animal in mind as he helped the young man move about with healing injuries.

At first the revelation terrified Takashi: this feeling was not the same general concern he felt for everyone, but genuine attachment to two people who could reject him.

Madara swore the child slept better after a nightmare if he transformed into his true shape.

Touko was always worried that saying the words outright would send Takashi-kun fleeing for the hills, so she hoped that instead her actions would say it plainly enough for her.

**Author's Note:**

> My first contribution to this fandom, hopefully not the last. I feel like I'm cheating on my wip, oops. Any questions feel free to ask, thanks for reading! 
> 
> Disclaimer: These characters are not mine.


End file.
